punctured

verb

past tense of puncture
1
as in pierced
to make a hole or series of holes in a nail punctured the tire

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stabbed
to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object I could never puncture my own skin with a hypodermic needle

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of punctured The hackneyed ruminations on feminine style are punctured by an image of violent female rage. — Leslie Camhi, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2026 As for the crack, well, that happened by accident when heavy equipment punched through a concrete wall and unintentionally punctured the sphere, company officials told The Mountaineer. — Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 14 Oct. 2026 Grill the potatoes, cut sides down first, then flip with tongs, until golden brown, crispy on the edges, and easily punctured by a thermometer probe. — Candy Hom, AJC.com, 10 Oct. 2026 At stake are large payments the state receives as part of the compact, which the Tribe could suspend if its monopoly on sports betting is punctured. — Gray Rohrer, Sun Sentinel, 8 Oct. 2026 That notion reached its pinnacle after the Chiefs beat the Bills 32-29 in the AFC Championship Game but was punctured by their 40-22 clobbering at the hands of the Eagles in Super Bowl LIX. — Kansas City Star, 21 Sep. 2026 As anxiety punctured the tranquility of the suburb, questions bubbled up on everything from the community’s water and pesticide use to abandoned oil wells underneath. — Julia Vargas Jones, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026 For especially delicate foods, make sure the toothpicks are secure and don’t touch anything that could be punctured or contaminated. — Caroline Lubinsky, Martha Stewart, 9 Sep. 2026 The needle accidentally punctured Taylor’s lung, causing chest pain and difficulty breathing. — Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punctured
  1. pierced
  2. stabbed
  3. drilled
  4. jabbed
  5. punched
  6. picked
  7. poked
  8. stuck
Verb
  • Cook for 20 minutes, or until the squash falls apart when pierced with a fork.
    — Candy Hom, AJC.com, 19 Oct. 2026
  • The exhibition layout, conceived by French designer Pascal Rodriguez, unfolds across four successive spaces, separated by partition walls pierced by large circular openings at their centers.
    — Sarah Belmont for ArtNews, Robb Report, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of pierced
Verb
  • After losing in 2024, McGinn has repeatedly raised concerns on the campaign trail about Bradley’s absence from a vote in the Senate on legislation named for the Ukrainian refugee fatally stabbed on Charlotte’s light rail.
    — Mary Ramsey, Charlotte Observer, 16 Oct. 2026
  • As seen on a surveillance video, the man walked up to the victim, grabbed him, and stabbed him multiple times before fleeing from the scene.
    — Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of stabbed
Verb
  • Broncos kicker Wil Lutz drilled a 53-yard field goal in overtime to elevate Denver to a 17-14 win over the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night.
    — Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Just two years ago, in 2024, Schmidt and the Trades Council were on opposite sides of a different ballot measure proposal — one over an oil industry effort to repeal a law banning oil and gas wells from being drilled too close to parks and schools.
    — Andrew Graham, Sacbee.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of drilled
Verb
  • Workers have been increasingly jabbed while on the job as needle-style medications — more specifically GLP-1s — have risen in popularity.
    — Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu jabbed back against the prevailing narrative yesterday, saying she was never invited to participate in the WNBA’s 3-point contest this weekend.
    — Chris Branch, New York Times, 24 July 2026
Definition of jabbed
Verb
  • The 25-year-old who was punched refused medical attention at the scene.
    — Jesse Zanger, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026
  • The Rays punched their ticket to baseball’s biggest stage with a 7-3 victory over the Cleveland Guardians in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series, taking the best-of-seven series four games to two.
    — Kyle Feldscher, CNN Money, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of punched
Verb
  • The property later passed through several notable hands, including Creative Artists Agency (CAA) co-chairman Kevin Huvane and filmmaker Roberto Sneider, before Channing Tatum picked it up for $6 million in 2015, according to Variety.
    — Michael Gioia, Architectural Digest, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Kansas was picked to finish fifth in the Big 12 preseason poll; the highest finish of the Schneider era was fifth place in 2021-22.
    — PJ Green October 21, Kansas City Star, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of picked
Verb
  • Kessler, standing nearby during Williams’ postgame news conference, poked his head out from behind a black curtain and gave his teammate a thumbs-up.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Already poked, the league bear hasn’t exactly gone into hibernation, either.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of poked
Verb
  • As such, the greatest obstacle to genuine transformation is getting stuck in the planning cycle.
    — Jeff DeGraff, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Walking into a room to do some task or other, they’ll get stuck obsessively staring at the door hinges.
    — Meghan O’Gieblyn, The New York Review of Books, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of stuck

Browse Nearby Words

puncture
punctured
punctures
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Cite this Entry

“Punctured.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punctured. Accessed 23 Oct. 2026.

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